What Does It Take to Win a Tournament?

In 2010, an angler who wanted to walk away with the 1st-place prize money from one of our tourneys needed a sack of fish weighing an average of 10.84 lbs. That same angler needed a bag weighing an average 11.23 lbs. then in 2011, and by 2012, the required average had increased to 13.17 lbs. For the 2013 season, the average winning 1st-place weight had bumped up to 13.94 lbs.

I felt those numbers were solid, but I wanted to find something with which to compare them, so I turned to the Internet. The first report I found was from the Mississippi Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks in Jackson, MS, for the year 2012. It included data gleaned from 236 tournament reports involving 35 different lakes around the state, including the likes of Lake Ferguson, Pickwick, Bay Springs, and Ross Barnett Reservoir. The average statewide weight needed to win 1st place in a 2012 tournament there was 13.91 lbs.--just 0.74 lbs. more than our 2012 average weight.

The second report I found was from the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources in Frankfort, KY, also for the year 2012. It reflected information obtained from 233 black-bass tournaments around the state involving 27 different bodies of water, including 15 large reservoirs (greater than 1,000 acres), 8 smaller lakes (less than 1,000 acres), and the Ohio, Kentucky, Cumberland, and Tennessee River systems. The average statewide weight required there to take 1st place in a 2012 tournament was 14.52 lbs.--1.35 lbs. more than our 2012 figure.

We finally broke the 20-lb. barrier in 2013, when Mike Evans (left) and Jeff Garnes (right) weighed in this limit on April 23. The 5 fish pictured here tipped the scales at 20.47 lbs., anchored by the 5.70-lb. bass in Mike's left hand.

What I would like to see in 2014 is someone finally breaking the 8-lb. barrier for big fish in one of our tournaments. An angler occasionally brings one of those citation-sized fish to the scales but never in a tournament. My records show that none of the big-bass winners in previous years ever have broken even the 7-lb. mark, but some have gotten close. That's the reason I look forward to seeing the 8-lb. threshold broken.

Here's hoping 2014 gives all of us something to smile about as we launch a new Dewey Mullins Memorial Bass Tourney Series. I hope to see all the old faces, as well as some new ones.